FIFA President Gianni Infantino potentially faces investigations over Trump’s World Cup involvement

For a moment after the U.S. men’s soccer team’s crushing 4-1 loss to Belgium, it seemed like everyone might be willing to forget the controversial phone call U.S. President Donald Trump made to head of FIFA Gianni Infantino before the July 7 World Cup game.

But it’s not that simple. 

Outraged by FIFA’s decision to delay a U.S. player’s suspension after Trump called Infantino asking him to review the matter, European lawmakers and human rights activists are calling for two separate ethics investigations into the leaders’ actions.

For the non-World Cup-obsessed, here’s a primer of exactly what happened and what could come next.

How did all this start?

During the United States’ 2-0 win over Bosnia-Herzegovina July 1, referees gave striker Folarin Balogun a red card for an illegal tackle. The call sidelined Balogun, the U.S.’s top goal-scorer, for the rest of the match and the next contest. 

After the game ended, the White House and U.S. Soccer Federation officials immediately began pursuing plans to appeal the automatic one-game suspension, POLITICO reported. 

The U.S. Soccer Federation formally submitted its appeal to FIFA, alleging the referees shouldn’t have used video review to determine the penalty. Brazilian referee Raphael Claus  refereed the U.S. and Bosnia-Herzegovina match, after which previous allegations of Claus’ involvement in a match-fixing scheme resurfaced. In a statement supporting Claus, FIFA said no evidence of wrongdoing has been found for those previous accusations.

When and why did FIFA first announce it had postponed Balogun’s suspension?

On July 5, FIFA announced it had postponed Balogun’s suspension, letting him play in the United States knockout round. The organization cited the FIFA Disciplinary Committee’s use of "Article 27 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code, under which it has discretion to suspend the implementation of any disciplinary measures, and ordered that the implementation of the one-match suspension be suspended for a probationary period of one year." 

Trump celebrated the decision, although without taking credit. 

"Thank you to FIFA for doing what was right, and reversing a great injustice!" Trump said on Truth Social.

The ruling drew criticism — especially from the United States’ then-prospective opponent Belgium.

"In order to safeguard the legitimate rights of all participating teams and to protect the fundamental principles of fair play in our sport, both at this FIFA World Cup and at future editions of the tournament, the RBFA is investigating all potential options," the Royal Belgian Football Association said in a July 5 statement.

The Belgian federation is defending the  integrity and ethics of football in general, Belgium head coach Rudi Garcia said via translator at a press conference hours after the announcement. 

How did news break that Trump had become involved in the red card matter?

The New York Times reported Trump’s involvement in the Balogun case after its publication The Athletic revealed the striker would be available for the July 6 match.

The New York Times article detailed the call between Trump and Infantino, noting it took place only hours after the U.S. defeated Bosnia-Herzegovina. The FIFA president confirmed he "did receive a call from President Donald Trump, just as I receive calls from heads of state, government officials, football stakeholders and business executives from around the world on many different issues."

"During our conversation, I explained that there was an ongoing legal process involving FIFA’s independent judicial bodies and that the case would be decided in due course by the competent bodies," Infantino said in an official statement. 

The New York Times reported that a second call happened after FIFA announced that Balogun’s ban had been delayed, and that Trump told Infantino FIFA had made the right decision.

Despite having Balogun, their best goal-scorer, available, the U.S. team was largely non-competitive against Belgium and failed to reach the World Cup quarterfinals for the fifth straight tournament since 2002. 

Has FIFA overturned red-card calls before?

The red-card case involving the U.S. men’s soccer team was the first of its kind since the 1962 World Cup, when Brazilian star Garrincha was sent off for kneeing a defender near the end of a contest against Chile.

At the time, a red card usually resulted in a next-game suspension for the offending player, but it was not automatic.

Chilean President Jorge Alessandri co-signed a petition to FIFA to let Garrincha play, and Peruvian President Manuel Prado Ugarteche asked the Peruvian referee who had called the penalty to tone down his testimony in front of FIFA’s disciplinary committee.

FIFA let Garrincha off with a warning, and Brazil went on to win the 1962 World Cup.

However, FIFA has more often reduced red-card suspensions for players during qualifying games leading up to the World Cup.

In November 2025, for example, Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo received a red card and a three-game suspension for elbowing Ireland’s Dara O’Shea. Although the suspension meant Ronaldo would be unavailable for his country’s first two World Cup contests, FIFA delayed the last two matches of his ban and let the superstar participate fully in this year’s tournament.

A month before the 2026 World Cup began, FIFA also waived the one-game suspensions of Argentina defender Nicolás Otamendi and Ecuador midfielder Moisés Caicedo issued at the qualifiers.

What are these latest investigations calling for?

In December 2025, FairSquare, a nonprofit that focuses on human rights in sports, filed an official ethics complaint alleging Infantino had engaged in "repeated breaches" of political neutrality. The complaint also requested an investigation into FIFA awarding Trump the inaugural "FIFA Peace Award" at the final draw for the 2026 World Cup that same month.

"You can always count, Mr. President, on my support, on the support of the entire football community — or ‘soccer’ community — to help you make peace and make the world prosper all over the world," Infantino told Trump on stage at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C..

On June 29, over 50 members of the European Parliament from 10 countries signed a letter to FIFA in support of the complaint. 

Trump’s involvement in suspending Balogun’s ban reignited FairSquare’s concerns regarding Infantino’s integrity. On July 8, the nonprofit announced on Bluesky that it will "file a complaint with the International Olympic Committee in relation to FIFA President Gianni Infantino's violation of IOC rules on political neutrality."

The IOC holds jurisdiction over Infantino, a member of the selective group since 2020. Any timeline for an investigation and potential punishment, if necessary, is unclear.

The European Parliament is also addressing the issue. Seventy-two members of Parliament wrote to the 27 heads of European football associations and called for an investigation into the reversed Balogun decision.